Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1887-12-08
DIGGING GOLD.
what the Real Life of a Prospector
is Like.
Miners Not Such Great Gambler s-Difi.
cuIties of the Lifc-LOnely Days ut
work--The Trou5le with Sneak
ing Claim-J Jumpers.

ing ClaimJumpers.
People used to think that the life OF
a gold-hunter is a jolly one; that when
he gets out of funds he simply retires
TO the nearest mountains. finds gold
Or silver mine, returns in few da,s
rel.s the property for large sum and
blows in' his easily-acquired wealth
against faro bank or loses it in trying
TO master the intricacics of draw
poker. After this he sallies forth rs
before and refills his depleted purse.
The fact, however. is that the life of Il
prospector is not easy or pleasant. but
ra.--r one of incessant toll, innumer-
able hardships and disappointmcnts.
Nor is he more given to gambling than
those who are engaged in other call
ings. In the springtime, often with
no other companion than stubborn
pack mule. which he leads along by Il
halter, the gold-hunter turns his back
-on such civilization as border towns
can boast of and hides himself amcng
where he remains. except when he
repairs 10 TIE nearest settlements to
procure fresh supplies. pursuing his
lonely and dangerous tasks until the
storms OF winter compel him to seek
shelter again among the habitations
of his fellow-men. If perchance he
should discover Il promising lead dur
ing his summer explorations. then he
builds himself q snug cabin of logs. or.
if there is no timber lin the neighbour
hood. scoops out hole in the side of
n :.:ountain. and, to use his own eX-
preston, camps on the prospect"
Ills diet consists OF fat bacon. bread of
his own manufacture and coffee, oc-
-casionally varied by roasted grouse. n
slice of venison or other game supplied
by his own tru.ty rife And he makes
his nightly bed on the brown lap Of
mother earth.
AS the gold-hunter ascends the slope
sof the mountain which he has selected
as the scene of his explorations. he
notes every change in the structure or
The composition of the rocks. When
a favorable locality is reached. Il local
ity where the geological formation in
dictates the presence of gold. he stops
ut the first spring of water. unpacks
his outfit. pitches his tent. if he has
one. which is rarely the case. pickets
his tired mule. gathers Il few loose
rocks and places them in the form OF
horseshoe on the ground, TO serve us Il
stove. and then. with bent head and
watchful eyes. carefully scans every
gulch and mountain side. prizes into
every nook and Granny in quest Of these
signs which Mother Nature always
posts near the spot where she has hid
den her precious treasures.
Far up on the rugged tanks of that
sstorm-riven mountain the gold-hunter
breaks off piece of rock from Il ledge
and 10! it is tlecked with bright, yell
low specks. not unlike that metal
which all mankind is so glad to
possess. His heart beats fast
rs he examines the specimen. He
vets the bright specks with his tongue
and picks at them nervously with his
pcnknifc. They crumble at the touch
of that instrument. and then he throws
the rock down with an angry gesture
and mutters disappointcdly: pilgrim
gold. be gosh"
Now he is down yonder in the gulch,
which seems rs slough it might be the
repository of a vast amount of the yell
low metal. digging hole in the
gravel. The trend of the rut is north
and south. Nature never piled up
drift in that manner. especially in a
rarine in this range of mountains
without sprinkling it with gold. 1t
was in just such spots rs this that she
loved to secrete her most beautiful
metal whenever it was torn from its
native home in the rock bv the slowly
advancing glacier or the floods Of by
gone ages. A little stream of water goes
singing down the gulch. and the tall
bunch grass bends gracefully over it
as if charmed by the song Hard by a
chipmunk sits rs motlonless rs stone
at the entrance to its little howell and
watches the intruder on its domain
with the greatest curiosity. On the
opposite flank of the mountain a
coyote skulks along in the manner of
its kind. while high above the eagle is
winging his way, speck across the
blue.
The shaft is down three feet and
now the miner fills his pan with
gravel from the bottom of the pit and
washes it in the stream. Yes, there
Is gold in the drift, for on the bottom
of the pan glisten three colors. They
are mere specks. it is true. but they
arc the genuine article. and no mis-
take. This small find encourages the